At first I loved the isolation, lack of traffic, and lack of commute and having to be at work. I realized I have strong social anxiety and the part of my brain that has to work extra hard to get along with people finally got a well deserved break. I put about 10,000 miles on my car during the pandemic--I live in the Washington DC area and the lack of traffic was one of the best feelings ever, especially since I had just bought my first real sports car last year. I started doing Geohashing again (the game invented by Randall Monroe: https://geohashing.site/geohashing/Main_Page) Under the auspices of geohashing I hiked every mountain, lake, river, and dale I could find within a 2 hour radius of my house. At one point I used cruise control for 65 miles continuously on one of the most notoriously congested highways in the area (I-66). That may have been the highlight of the pandemic for me. I now have an intimate understanding of the terrain from Southeastern PA to western MD to all of Northern VA and even much of WVA and learned a lot of history in the process.
However there were some down sides. I have gained a TON of weight. The long drives and medium-to-long hikes didn't make up for the physical activity I was getting from going to the gym every day. I discovered many new delicious restaurants in the area in the name of "supporting local business."
Also, finally, in the last few weeks, my social batteries finally recharged, and I'm starting to get lonely again.
Also, traffic is back, so no more long rides.
Also, I caught Lyme disease due to all the deep woods hiking. It's resolving well and my knee feels slightly better each day (I did make the mistake of continuing to hike strenuously on it when it first swelled up and even now try to push it a little too far either with exercise or bike rides)
The good news is, gyms just opened back up.
Overall I would say my mental health is better than it was before the pandemic, and my physical health is worse.
At first I loved the isolation, lack of traffic, and lack of commute and having to be at work. I realized I have strong social anxiety and the part of my brain that has to work extra hard to get along with people finally got a well deserved break. I put about 10,000 miles on my car during the pandemic--I live in the Washington DC area and the lack of traffic was one of the best feelings ever, especially since I had just bought my first real sports car last year. I started doing Geohashing again (the game invented by Randall Monroe: https://geohashing.site/geohashing/Main_Page) Under the auspices of geohashing I hiked every mountain, lake, river, and dale I could find within a 2 hour radius of my house. At one point I used cruise control for 65 miles continuously on one of the most notoriously congested highways in the area (I-66). That may have been the highlight of the pandemic for me. I now have an intimate understanding of the terrain from Southeastern PA to western MD to all of Northern VA and even much of WVA and learned a lot of history in the process.
However there were some down sides. I have gained a TON of weight. The long drives and medium-to-long hikes didn't make up for the physical activity I was getting from going to the gym every day. I discovered many new delicious restaurants in the area in the name of "supporting local business."
Also, finally, in the last few weeks, my social batteries finally recharged, and I'm starting to get lonely again.
Also, traffic is back, so no more long rides.
Also, I caught Lyme disease due to all the deep woods hiking. It's resolving well and my knee feels slightly better each day (I did make the mistake of continuing to hike strenuously on it when it first swelled up and even now try to push it a little too far either with exercise or bike rides)
The good news is, gyms just opened back up.
Overall I would say my mental health is better than it was before the pandemic, and my physical health is worse.
My job has remained steady and engaging.